lisa 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
December 16, 
FARMERS’ CLUB 
[ Every query must be accompanied by the 
name and address of the writer to insure 
attention. Before asking z. question, please see 
whether it is not answered in our advertising 
columns. Ask only a few questions at one time. 
Pul questions on a separate piece of paper.l 
Snow’s Orange Peach. 
P. A. J., Wellsburg, IF. Va .—I am espe¬ 
cially interested in the notes by Van Deman 
and others in The R. N.-Y. Would some 
of your contributors give an opinion con¬ 
cerning Snow's Orange peach ; is it worth 
planting commercially? IIow about the 
quality? Is it productive? 
Ans.—T he Snow’s Orange is a late 
peach that has good size, good quality 
and is large enough, too, but it is not 
thought to be productive enough for 
profit, compared with other varieties 
ripening at the same season, by those 
in whose orchards I have seen it fruit¬ 
ing in northern Michigan. Elsewhere it 
may do better, but I would not plant it 
from the evidence I now have of it. 
H. E. VAN DEMAN. 
The Fordhook Squash—Field Culture. 
This squash originated in Washington 
County, N. Y., several years ago. It is 
well adapted to a variety of soils and 
climates, being hardy and a vigorous 
grower. In this part of Ohio it is usual 
to find it growing and doing finely in the 
cornfields, growing too rapidly for the 
bugs to do serious injury and standing 
almost as much hardship as the field 
pumpkin. However hardy and meritor¬ 
ious in other ways, unless a squash pos¬ 
sess high culinary value its fame and 
culture will not extend very far. As 
to quality, the Fordhook squash is 
hard to equal in the squash line, and 
is only beaten by the Delicious, a very 
different squash and much harder to 
grow. A well-grown and well-ripened 
Fordhook is much superior, when 
FORDHOOK SQUASH. Fig. 489. 
baked or boiled, to most sweet potatoes, 
and excellent for pies. You will want 
jio more rank flavored pumpkin. When 
young and indeed at any stage of 
growth even when ripe, if fried like 
eggplant the Fordhook is of high 
quality. This squash grows much like 
the picture, about 10 inches long with 
ribs running along the outside. The 
skin is straw yellow or cream colored, 
the flesh is firm and crisp in the well- 
ripened specimens. The flesh is a light 
straw yellow and when cooked separates 
easily from the thin paper-like skin. 
The writer has been growing this 
squash 10 years and is well pleased with 
it. It is tedious work to pick up a 
wagonload of them, but they are worth 
the trouble and the surplus is highly ap¬ 
preciated by the cattle. I have no seed 
for sale and write this because I have 
found this squash to be highly depend¬ 
able and hope others will be induced to 
make a trial of it in their cornfields or 
truck patches. w. e. duckwall. 
Ohio. 
Southern Soil and Grass. 
M. P., New Castle, Pa .—I was in Ala¬ 
bama and I got acquainted with a farmer. 
I talked with him about your paper. I 
promised to send it to him for 10 weeks’ 
trial. I couldn’t understand how people 
could feed their cattle. 1 passed miles 
and miles of land, and never saw any hay 
or good pastures for cattle. The land is 
very red. Can’t you give me a description 
in your paper why that is? Is it the 
farmer's fault, or wouldn’t it grow there? 
Ans. —The surprise of a Northern 
farmer going through the red uplands 
of the South at the absence of grass is 
a common occurrence. The grass is not 
there because the cotton farmers have 
spent their lives fighting the grass that 
wants to grow. The whole aim of the? 
average cotton planter is to “keep out 
of the grass.” They do not«keep any 
stock as a rule in the all-cotton sections 
except the mules that work the crop. 
Now there is no better land for grass 
and stock than the red uplands of the 
South if the grass is given a chance. 
But there are sections in both Alabama 
and Mississippi where you will find 
plenty of grass, where the Johnson 
grass has taken possession and forced 
the farmers out of all-cotton and into 
stock feeding. There is a limited sec¬ 
tion in both these States where the 
country is almost given up to the John¬ 
son grass. Around the Mississippi 
Agricultural College near Starkville the 
Johnson grass waves all over the land, 
and stock feeding has become a very 
considerable interest. As the president 
of the college once said to me, “We 
thought the grass was a great curse 
from its aggressive character at first, 
but we find now that it has been a bless¬ 
ing in disguise, as it has created a live 
stock industry that did not exist till 
the Johnson grass came.” But all that 
red clay country will grow grass and 
small grain, and I would prefer to be 
without the Johnson grass and to grow 
grass that I could control rather tha^ 
a grass that will take the whole farm in 
spite of me. But there is no doubt that 
the Johnson grass is a valuable- hay 
grass. I was taken out at the Missis¬ 
sippi College by one of the professors to 
see their Alfalfa plot. The carriage 
stopped and the professor said: “There 
is the Alfalfa.” I could see nothing but 
tall Johnson grass, but on walking into 
it I found that the Alfalfa was hold¬ 
ing its own bravely, though the John¬ 
son grass was the taller. The profes¬ 
sor told me that it had been cut three 
times, and at that time they were about 
to make the fourth cutting of Alfalfa 
and Johnson grass. Yes, you can grow 
Orchard grass, Fall Meadow oats-grass 
and the Fescues successfully in Ala¬ 
bama. In north Alabama I have been 
on the farm of a Kentucky stockman 
who went there and started a stock and 
grain farm, and he has succeeded and 
makes usually 35 bushels of wheat an 
acre, and claims that his corn costs him 
not over 11 cents a bushel, and he 
makes great yields. I know of no part 
of the Southern upland country more 
favorable for improvement than the 
pretty valleys of north Alabama. The 
absence of grass is, as I have suggested, 
the fault of the men who cultivate the 
land, not farmers, but cotton growers. 
W. F. MASSEY. 
The Nursery Tree Question. 
About the roots of trees, page 1111, 
Frof. Massey well says that the small roots 
dry up and die. There is an annual 
system of the roots which about corre¬ 
sponds to the leaves of the tree. _ These 
roots die; of course some others which are 
more like the branches continue and live 
and should be as carefully preserved as 
the branches, but not more carefully. There 
is no deadly harm done to a tree in cutting 
away a lot of the branches when dormant. 
Neither will it do so much harm to cut 
considerable of the root away in digging. 
Stringfellow has proved that what will do 
great harm is to strip the leaves of a 
tree when green, as this is where the tree 
gets its food for the next Spring’s start. 
Early digging does more than anything 
else to injure nursery-grown trees. Plant¬ 
ers could get better results by growing 
their own trees. It would be a very valu¬ 
able work to turn over to the boys on a 
farm, and would be apt to bring out the 
best that is in a boy. Of course it is ex¬ 
pensive to sell trees by soliciting orders, 
yet where the seller is a man of experi¬ 
ence it pays the inexperienced planters to 
have him on the ground. Where he is not 
of course it is waste. t. k. h. 
Washington._ 
A Concrete Watering Trough. 
When wanting to build a common con¬ 
crete watering trough this Fall I did not 
know how to go about it, as I could not 
remember having read anyone’s experience 
in building one, so I made inquiries of 
neighbors and used some common sense. 
So perhaps my experience may be of use to 
some wishing to build one. In the first place, 
dig down below frost level for a founda¬ 
tion, make it somewhat larger than trough 
is to be. Fill in with stones larger in the 
bottom and smaller on top. tamp down 
well with some heavy iron, crowbar or 
sledge hammer will do ; fill crevice well, or 
concrete will be wasted : make as level as 
possible. We then mixed one to four ce¬ 
ment and gravel, enough to cover all over 
two inches deep, then on top of that we 
put four inches of one to two mixture of 
concrete. While that set I made the out¬ 
side form or box. using one-inch boards, 
two-inch are better if a longer trough is 
wanted. The inside form was made six 
inches smaller every way. and when set 
inside we put six-inch sticks around be¬ 
tween the two forms to have the walls of 
even thickness. Let me say right here that 
we had great difficulty in removing the in¬ 
side form; it must be made strong, so it 
will not give, as the pressure of soft con¬ 
crete is great. Perhaps I did not make that 
form right. This form must also be smooth 
on the outside, as that is the side that 
comes in contact with inside of trough. 
The walls were made of one to two mix¬ 
ture of concrete, well tamped. We used 
old tire irons for reinforcement, bending 
them and placing around ends. They 
should be placed every six inches until top 
is reached. If the day is very hot the out¬ 
side has a tendency to dry quicker than 
inside, causing trough to crack. To over¬ 
come this keep outside damp until well set. 
Then I mixed clear cement with water to 
the consistency of heavy whitewash and 
applied to bottom and walls inside and out. 
This prevents water from seeping through 
trough. My trough is 5%xo%x2% feet, 
inside measure, plenty large enough for all 
purposes. It took my man and myself one- 
half day to build (having evervthing handy) 
and 700 pounds cement, making a cheap, 
practical and simple trough. j. s. k. 
Grove, Vt. 
“For the Land’s Sake, use Bowker’s 
Fertilizers; they enrich the earth and 
those who till it.”— Adv. 
nDAMRCQ Choice fruit, $1.50 per box. Writeme. 
UnHIlULO G. E. CONKLIN, Winter Park, Fla. 
SMALL FRUITS 
I grow Strawberry, Raspberry, Black¬ 
berry and other small Fruit Plants, 
Grape Vines, Shrubbery, Privet, etc. 
My FREE Catalogue tella the truth 
about them, and the prices quoted are 
fair for good stock, true to name. Write 
me today, w F. ALLEN, 
72 Market Street, SaUxbnry, Md. 
“Howto Growand Market Fruit” 
Tells the Whole Story in One Volume; gives Lifetime Exper- 
ence of Practical Growers. 2,000 Acres in Nursery Stock. 
Larue Stock of Peach and Apple Trees, 
Write for catalog and how to get the book free. 
HARRISON NURSERIES, Berlin, Md. 
RELIABLE 
FRUIT TREES 
We do not ask for your orders 
simply because we are one of the 
oldest nursery firms in the business 
or because we are the largest in this 
section of the country. But we do ask 
your business on the merits of our trees 
and plants—the best and most reliable that 
money can buy. Our long experience and 
success is your guarantee that our pro¬ 
duct and prices are right. 
Send a postal today for our practical 
Booklet. It boils down for your benefit 
what we have learned during thirty years’ 
experience in growing fruit. 
BARNES BROS. NURSERY CO. 
Box 8, Yales ville. Conn. 
Power at Low Cost 
Kerosene as Fuel 
H ERE is Power for you that can always be 
relied upon. The Colton Modern Kerosene 
Engine is the most economieal, simplest and 
most reliable Farm Power Plant yet invented. Its 
many new improved patented features are most 
valuable and are not found on any other engine. 
Power is constant, speed regulated without stopping 
engine—adjusts itself instantly to anv overload—no 
cranking to start it. 
Let this wonderful engine demonstrate its unusual 
value to you. Connect it to your water system, 
lighting system, pnmps or any other machinery. If 
it doesn’t prove a great money and labor saver, 
return it and get your money back. 
The Colton operates perfectly on kerosene, the 
most economical and satisfactory fuel. Kerosene can 
be purchased anywhere at about half the cost of gas¬ 
oline, is much safer to handle and gives more power 
gallon for gallon, than gasoline. Gasoline, alcohol! 
distilate, and other fusel oil may also be nsed. 
Positive, Unconditional Guaranty 
Every Colton is sold under a positive, unqualified 
guarantee to give satisfactory service or money re¬ 
funded. Our company has been established 27 years. 
You need an engine on your farm—so investigate 
the Colton—the latest 
development in en¬ 
gine building. 
Get it on trial and 
compare its simple, 
compact construc¬ 
tion. superior quality 
materials and high 
grade workmanship. 
You will 6ee it oper¬ 
ate with less atten¬ 
tion and furnishes 
more power per rat¬ 
ing than any engine 
you ever saw. Send 
for free engine book 
at once. 
Arthur Colton Co. 
301 Brush St. 
Detroit - Mich. 
Monarch 
Hydraulic 
Cider Press 
Net owners 259? to 1005? 
on investment per year 
Ask for Free Cat¬ 
alog and ‘‘Good 
Tip” booklet tell¬ 
ing how. 
Monarch Machinery Co., 609 Hadron Terminal, New York. 
AGENTS 
SOMETHING 
NEW 
THOMAS ROPE MAKER 
Makes any length or thickness of rope 
out of binder twine, wool twiue or any 
kind of waste twine. Twice as strong 
as factory made rope. Anyone can 
do it. Saves 80 <o 90 per cent. 
Agents coining big money. Sells 
like wild fire. No argument neces¬ 
sary. Just show and your sale is 
made. Big profits. We want good 
agents in every county. Write for 
terms and free sample to workers. 
THOMAS M FG. CO. 
3465 Barny St., DAYTON, OHIO 
BIG PROFITS 
Raising Fruits and Vegetables in 6 Sou. 
States, traversed by S. A. L. Ry. Land 
cheap. Water plentiful. Healthy climate. 
Net $500 to $1000 per acre—2 to 3 crops a 
year, in Manatee County, on West Coast of 
Florida. Raise Oranges, Grape Fruit, Vegeta¬ 
bles. Illustrated booklet free. 
J, A. PRIDE, Gen. Ind. Agt., 
Seaboard Air Line Railway, Suite 606 Norfolk. Va. 
Peach and 
Apph 
iting. Price 
le Trees 
For fall or spring planting - Prices light; stock 
right. MYElt & SON, liridgeville, Delaware 
Have you ever 
worked at your tprayer pump ^ 
for an hour (or longer) with your hands in 
the solution? You won’t if you have Iron 
Age No. 191 Vertical Barrel Pump. It at¬ 
taches on the outbid* of any barrel—easy to 
get at. Bronze ball valves; hemp packing; 
automatic dasher inside; 4 row attachment. 
Low price. With or without barrel. 
You must see this sprayer to know its 
worth. Ask your dealer to show it 
and other Iron Age farm, gardes 
and orchard tools. Backed by 76 
years’ experience. 
Write us for special booklets. 
BATEMAN M’F’G CO. 
Box 102-V, Grenloch, N. J. 
Patented 
Oct. 6th 
1908 
PRUNING SAW 
Operates from ground. No breaking of limbs 
by climbing. No moving 1 of ladders. No sawing 
of wrong limbs. Can reach topmost branches and 
shape tree better than by old methods. Will save its 
cost in one day. Nothing to get out of order. Will last 
for years. Thousands in use. Recommended by all users. 
Jf your dealer can’t furnish it, write for full descriptive 
circular and prices. Satisfaction guaranteed. Address 
FRUITGROWERS’ SAW CO., Scottsville, N. Y. 
We*Raise SEEDSon Our Farm 
and sell direct to the planters at wholesale prices. We raise Vegetable 
Seeds of highest quality, carefully selected Seed Corn, and other, 
farm seeds, high-grade Seed Potatoes, etc. We can 
supply better seeds at lower prices than city seedmen. Catalog 
free. Ask for wholesale price list also, if you grow for market. 
JOSEPH HARRIS CO., Box 52, Coldwater, New York 
HARRIS 
SEEDS 
“The sled that steers” 
ideal Christmas gift. Nothing will make the children 
happy! Don’t buy them simply a “steering sled.” 
Get a Flexible Flyer, the safest, speediest, handsomest 
and most economical sled made. Can be steered 
at full speed in any direction, around all obstacles 
and past all other sleds. 
The patented spring steel runners are grooved to prevent "skidding.” 
and are far superior to flat or rounded runners on ice or snow. 
It is light and graceful. Easy to pull up hill, yet so strong it 
outlasts three ordinary sleds 
Just the sled for boy or girl. Saves shoes, prevents wet feet, colds, 
etc, and saves doctor’s bills. If you wish the advantage of these 
exclusive features, insist on a Flexible Flyer and look for this trade-mark on the sled, 
rprr aeardboardworking model. Alsobeautifulbookletillustrated in 
* I'- 1 -**-* colors showing coasting scenes, etc. Both free. Write a postal. , 
giving name and address, and say ‘‘send model and Booklet. ” Write today! 1 
S. L. ALLEN & CO., Box I102E, Philadelphia, Pa. 
TRADK-MARK 
HAND SPRAIUOTORS 
Nos. 1 and 2, with horse-drawn cart, can be used 
on orchards, vines, row crops or weeds. As shown 
here, it is arranged for row crops and weeds, 
but separate attachments adapt it to other uses. 
Adjustable width of track and rows, all-brass 
Spramotor, brass ball valves, automatic 
agitator and compensating plunger. 
High-grade throughout. For one 
horse only. Price, $47 to $54 
Awarded Two Gold Medals at National Horticultural Congress 
E. H. HEARD, 1326 Erie Street, BUFFALO, N. Y. 
